basics of Creatine Supplementation

By: Kurtis Frasier

Creatine is one of the most heavily researched and readily available supplements on the market. Creatine is safe and cheap supplementation that is available. But what is creatine and why do we need it?

Creatine is a nitrogenous organic compound that is synthesized naturally in the body and helps to supply energy to all cells in the body. Creatine is primarily synthesized in the liver, it is also synthesized in smaller amounts in both the kidneys and pancreas. Creatine can also be obtained though dietary sources. It is most readily found in meat and fish. Approximately 98% of the bodies creatine is stored within skeletal muscle.

Why is creatine important to training?

Creatine in the form of creatine phosphate has an essential role in energy metabolism as a substrate for the formation adenosine triphosphate (ATP) by rephosphorylating adenosine diphosphate (ADP), especially during short high-intensity exercises. Creatine phosphate stored in the muscle is used to supply fast-twitch, high-glycolytic muscle fibers with immediate energy. The body’s ability to rapidly rephosphorylate ADP is dependent on the availability of creatine within the muscles. As the bodies creatine store become depleted the ability to perform high-intensity exercises declines. Studies have shown that during a 6-second bout of maximal exercise, creatine levels within the muscles are reduced 35%-57% from resting levels (1). When the duration of maximal output increases to 30-seconds creatine levels in the muscles are further reduced by 64%-80% from resting levels (2,3). Hints why an all-out minute on the Airdyne is about 45-seconds too long.

The basis for creatine supplementation is simple: if the muscle creatine concentrations could be increased/maintained the ability to sustain high-intensity outputs would increase. Additionally, creatine supplementation can reduce muscle cell damage and enhance muscle cell volumization as well as improve brain function, bone healing and glucose tolerance. In short it can help you recover more efficiently.

Creatine supplementation is reported to increase the creatine content of muscles by approximately 20%. While creatine content within the skeletal muscles can be increased there is a saturation limit. Once creatine concentration in the skeletal muscles reach 150-160mmol/kg dry weight, additional supplementation is unable to increase muscle creatine concentration (4). More is not always better.

There are a couple common ways to start a creatine supplementation. A typical supplementation regimen will start an individual with a loading phase. A creatine loading phase is typically done with an individual taking 20g-25g of a creatine supplementation for 5 days to increase skeletal muscle creatine saturation. If you want to be more specific about an individual loading phase dose use 0.3g/kg of body weight. Once the “loading” phase is completed the individual will move into a maintenance phase. Typically, the maintenance phase will consist of 2g- 5g of a creatine supplementation per day. Larger individuals may need to take up-to 10g of a creatine supplementation per day.

An individual does not need to do a loading phase. If you wish you may also start by taking the set amount of creatine supplementation for a maintenance phase. Muscle creatine content will reach similar levels, it will just take longer (14-days+ vs. 5-days). Muscle creatine levels will remain elevated as long as the maintenance dose is maintained. Once supplementation has stopped muscle creatine levels will return to normal levels in about 4-weeks.

Creatine supplementation has been shown to increase maximal strength, power, and lean body mass. Studies have found there are no significant negative effects of short or long-term creatine supplementation, however if you are in a sport that requires you to compete in a specific weight class an increase in mass may be considered a negative side effect. While there are no known negative side effects some individuals have mild acute side effects that include gastrointestinal issues such as gas and mild bloating. One study showed that competitive athletes who used creatine for up to 4-years only had occasional gastrointestinal upset during the loading phase (5).

Creatine is not some type of wonder drug that is going to magically increase performance. If you are not willing to put in the work you won’t see any results, with or without a creatine supplementation. If you decide to take a creatine supplementation stick to pure creatine monohydrate. Stay away from blends, complexes or other mixture that have additional stuff added in, you never know what you are getting.

References:

1. Gaitanos, GC, Williams, C, Boobis, LH, and Brooks, S. Human muscle metabolism during intermittent maximal exercise. J Appl Physiol 75:712-719, 1993

2. Bogdanis, GC, Nevill, ME, Boobis, LH, and Lakomy, HK. Contribution of phosphocreatine and aerobic metabolism to energy supply during repeated sprint exercise. J Appl Physiol 80:876-884, 1996

3: Cheetham, ME, Boobis, LH, Brooks, S, and Williams, C. Human muscle metabolism during sprint running. J Appl Physiol 61:54-60, 1986

4: Greenhaff, PL. Creatine and it application as an ergogenic aid. Int J Sport Nutr 5 (Suppl):S 100-s110, 1995

5: Schilling, BK, Stone, MH, Utter, A, Kearney, JT, Johnson, M, Coglianese, R, Smith, L, O’Bryant, HS, Fry, AC, Starks, M, Keith, R, and Stone, ME. Creatine supplementation and heath cariables: a retrospective study. Med Sci Sports Exerc 33:183-188, 2001